Richmond, campaign against
The first collisions between the two great armies on the borders of the
Chickahominy River occurred on May 23 and 24, 1862—one near
New Bridge, not far from Cold Harbor, between
Michigan cavalry and a Louisiana regiment, when thirty-seven of the latter were captured.
The other was at and near
Mechanicsville, 7 or 8 miles from
Richmond, where a part of
McClellan's right wing was advancing towards the
Chickahominy.
There was a sharp skirmish at Ellison's Mill (May 23), a mile from
Mechanicsville.
To this place the
Confederates fell back, and the next morning were driven across the
Chickahominy.
On the same morning
General McClellan issued a stirring order for an immediate advance on
Richmond; but the overcautious commander hesitated to move until the golden opportunity had passed.
President Lincoln telegraphed to the general, “I think the time is near when you must either attack
Richmond or give up the job and come to the defence of
Washington.”
The National and Confederate armies had three times run a race for
Washington.
After the
battle at Spottsylvania Court-house, they entered upon a race for
Richmond, then the
Confederate capital.
Grant determined to transfer his army to the south side of the
James River, cut off the chief sources of supply for the Confederate army from the south, and attempt the capture of
Richmond front that direction.
He disencumbered his army of about 20,000 sick and wounded, who were sent to the hospitals at
Washington and elsewhere, and with 25,000 veteran recruits, amply supplied, and 30,000 volunteers for 100 days joining his army, he began another flank movement on the night of May 20-21, 1864,
Hancock's corps leading.
Lee had kept a vigilant watch of the movements of the Nationals, and sent
Longstreet's corps to march southward parallel with
Hancock.
Warren followed
Hancock, and
Ewell followed
Longstreet's troops.
On May 21 the race was fairly begun, the
Confederates having the more direct or shorter route.
Lee outstripped his antagonist, and when the Nationals aproached the
South Anna River the
Confederates were already strongly posted there on the south side of the river, where
Lee had evidently determined to make a stand.
Grant proceeded to attempt to dislodge him. In attempts to force passages across the stream, very sharp engagements ensued.
Having partly crossed the
North Anna, the Army of the Potomac was in great peril.
Its two strong wings were on one side of the stream, and its weak centre on the other.
Perceiving this peril,
Grant secretly recrossed the river with his troops, and resumed his march on
Richmond by a flank movement far to the eastward of the Confederate army.
The flanking column was led by
Sheridan, with two divisions of cavalry.
On the 28th the whole army was south of the
Pamunkey,
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Map of the fortifications around Richmond. |
and in communication with its new base at the
White House.
This movement compelled
Lee to abandon his strong position at the
North Anna, but, having a shorter route, he was in another good position before the Nationals crossed the
Pamunkey.
He was at a point where he could cover the railways and highways leading to
Richmond.
The
Nationals were now within 15 miles
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of
Richmond.
Their only direct pathway to that capital was across the
Chickahominy.
There was much skirmishing, and
Grant was satisfied that he would be compelled to force the passage of the
Chickahominy on
Lee's flank, and he prepared for that movement by sending
Sheridan to seize a point near Cold Harbor, where roads leading into
Richmond diverged.
After a fight with
Fitzhugh Lee's cavalry, it was secured, and on the same night (May 30)
Wright's corps pressed forward to the same point.
A large body of troops, under
Gen. W. F. Smith, called from the Army of the James, were approaching Cold Harbor at the same time.
These took position on
Wright's right wing.
There a terrible battle occurred (June 1), in which both armies suffered immense loss.
It was now perceived that the fortifications around
Richmond were too formidable to warrant a direct attack upon them with a hope of success, so
Grant proceeded to throw his army across to the south side of the
James River, and to operate against the
Confederate capital on the right of that stream.
It was near the middle of June before the whole National force had crossed the
Chickahominy and moved to the
James by way of Charles City Court-house.
There they crossed the river in boats and over pontoon bridges; and on June 16, when the entire army was on the south side,
General Grant made his headquarters at
City Point, at the junction of the
Appomattox and
James rivers.
A portion of the Army of the James, under
General Butler, had made an unsuccessful attempt to capture
Petersburg, where the
Confederates had constructed strong works.
Before them the Army of the Potomac appeared on the evening of June 16, and in that vicinity the two armies struggled for the mastery until April the next year, or about ten months.
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Sunday morning, April 2, 1865, while attending service at St. Paul's Church,
President Davis received this message from
General Lee:
It is absolutely necessary that we should abandon our position to-night, or run the risk of being cut off in the morning.
Hastily reading it he left the church, quickly followed by others, and the service was abruptly concluded.
Rumors that
Richmond was to be evacuated were soon succeeded by the definite announcement of the fact.
One special train carried the
President and the cabinet, together with several million dollars in gold.
Late in the afternoon
Governor Smith and the members of the legislature embarked on canal-boats for
Lynchburg.
The roads from the city leading to the north and west were crowded with wagons, carriages, and carts, horsemen, and men and women on foot seeking for a place of refuge.
The night when the Confederate government fled from
Richmond was a fearful one for the inhabitants of that city.
All day after the receipt of
Lee's despatch— “My lines are broken in three places;
Richmond must be evacuated to-night” — the people were kept in the most painful suspense by the reticence of the government, then making preparations to fly for safety.
That body employed every vehicle for this use, and the people who prepared to leave the city found it difficult to get any conveyance.
For these as much as $100 in gold was given for service from a dwelling to the railway station.
It was revealed to the people early in the evening that the Confederate Congress had ordered all the cotton, tobacco, and other property which the owners could not carry away, and which was stored in four great warehouses, to be burned to prevent it falling into the hands of the Nationals.
There was a fresh breeze from the south, and the burning of these warehouses would imperil the whole city.
General Ewell, in command there, vainly remonstrated against the execution of the order.
A committee of the common council went to
Jefferson Davis before he had left to remonstrate against it, to which he replied that their statement that the burning of the warehouses would endanger the city was “a cowardly pretext on the part of the citizens, trumped up to endeavor to save their property for the
Yankees.”
A similar answer was given at the War Department.
The humane
Ewell was compelled to obey, for the order from the War Department was imperative.
The city council took the precaution, for the public safety, to order the destruction of all liquors that
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might be accessible to lawless men. This was done, and by midnight hundreds of barrels of spirituous liquors were flowing in the gutters, where stragglers from the retreating army and rough citizens gathered it in vessels, and so produced the calamity the authorities endeavored to avert.
The torch was applied, and at daybreak the warehouses were in flames.
The city was already on fire in several places.
The intoxicated soldiers, joined with many of the dangerous class of both sexes,
formed a marauding mob of fearful proportions, who broke open and pillaged stores and committed excesses of every kind.
From midnight until dawn the city was a pandemonium.
The roaring mob released the prisoners from the jail and burned it. They set fire to the arsenal, and tried to destroy the Tredegar Iron Works.
Conflagrations spread rapidly, for the fire department was powerless, and by the middle of the forenoon (April 3) a greater portion of the principal business part of
Richmond was a blazing furnace.
Between midnight and dawn the
Confederate troops made their way across the bridges to the south side of the
James.
At 3 A. M. the magazine near the almshouse was fired and blown up with a concussion that shook the city to its foundations.
It was followed by the explosion of the Confederate ram
Virginia, below the city.
When at 7 A. M., the troops were all across the river, the bridges were burned behind them.
A number of other vessels in the river were destroyed.
The bursting of shells in the arsenal when the fire reached them added to the horrors of the scene.
At noon about 700 buildings in the business part of the city, including a Presbyterian church, were in ruins.
While
Richmond was in flames National troops entered the city, and. by great exertions, subdued the fire and saved the city from utter destruction.
Many million dollars' worth of property had been annihilated.
Gen. Godfrey Weitzel had been left, with a portion of the Army of the James, on the north side of that river, to menace
Richmond, and he kept up a continual show of great numbers, which had deceived
Longstreet, standing in defence of the
Confederate capital.
After midnight on April 3, a great light in
Richmond, the sound of explosions, and other events, revealed to
Weitzel the fact that the
Confederates were evacuating the city.
At daylight he put
Draper's negro brigade in motion towards
Richmond.
The place of every terra-torpedo in front of the
Confederate works was marked by a small flag, for the safety of their own men, and in their hasty departure they forgot to remove them.
Cannon on the deserted
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works were left unharmed.
Early in the morning the whole of
Weitzel's force were in the suburbs of the town.
A demand was made for its surrender, and at seven o'clock
Joseph Mayo, the mayor, handed the keys of the public buildings to the messenger of the summons.
Weitzel and his staff rode in at eight o'clock, at the head of
Ripley's brigade of negro troops, when
Lieut. J. Livingston Depeyster, of
Weitzel's staff, ascended to the roof of the State-house with a national flag, and, with the assistance of
Captain Langdon,
Weitzel's chief of artillery, unfurled it over that building, and in its Senate chamber the office of headquarters was established.
Weitzel occupied the dwelling of
Jefferson Davis, and
General Shepley was appointed military governor.
The troops were then set at work to extinguish the flames.
See “on to
Richmond!” ; “on to
Washington!”
